Carrie Underwood has mastered a number of musical skill sets since launching her career in 2005. Singing? Check. Performing? Check. Songwriting? Check. Marketability? Check.
But Carrie has also has shown a willingness to step out of her comfort zone to try new endeavors, including starting her own Calia clothing line in 2015, co-producing her Cry Pretty album in 2018, and writing her first book, Find Your Path, in 2020.
As Carrie told Kix Brooks of American Country Countdown, the best way to gain confidence is by doing, but sometimes “you’ve just got to fake it.”
“Some days you’ve just got to fake it, man [laughing],” says Carrie. “I’m not gonna lie. Some days you don’t feel confident. You don’t feel up to it or you don’t feel… whatever it is, but I feel like the more you step into that role anyway . . . the more you start to feel it. So, if I’m going into a situation that I question—like producing, I had never done it before [Cry Pretty]. I don’t know how to be a producer. I’ve worked with plenty, so it was kind of like in the beginning, it’s like, ‘Okay, just kind of pretend like you know what you’re doing [laughing] until you actually do,’ and I feel like that worked.”
Carrie launched a new fitness app, fit52, in conjunction with the release of her new book, Find Your Path, which hit the shelves on March 3.
Kane Brown scored his fifth consecutive No. 1 single as “Homesick” ascended to the top of both the Billboard Country Airplay chart and Mediabase chart this week.
Penned by Kane, Brock Berryhill, Matthew McGinn and Taylor Phillips, “Homesick” is featured on Kane’s 2018 album, Experiment.
“‘Homesick’ is just kinda personal because we’ve done so many shows in the last couple of years, and I’m never home,” says Kane. “I miss my dogs, I miss my family and my friends. I had it tattooed on me already, so it kinda made sense [as a single].”
The tune follows previous No. 1 singles “Lose It,” “Heaven,” “What Ifs” and “Good as You.”
The Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) has decided to reschedule the Tin Pan South Songwriters Festival, which was slated for March 23–28 in Nashville.
In light of the tornado damage Nashville suffered on March 3, as well as the coronavirus outbreak, the NSAI plans to postpone the festival until the summer.
“After heavy consideration, in light of the tornado this week as well as growing health concerns over the coronavirus, we have decided to reschedule Tin Pan South Songwriters Festival to later this year, in the summer,” said NSAI executive director Bart Herbison. “We feel this is the responsible decision, and it is supported by Tin Pan venues and sponsors involved in the festival. We want to thank everyone who had planned to participate in or attend the festival, and appreciate the support in rescheduling it.”
More than 400 artists were scheduled to descend upon Nashville for the 28th annual Tin Pan South Songwriters Festival. During the six-day festival, 10 Nashville venues were to host 100 shows, featuring some of the industry’s best singer/songwriters, including Hayes Carll, Jamey Johnson, Allison Moorer, Mindy Smith and more.
The NSAI noted that it is possible that several of the venues will move forward with the previously scheduled events, which will be decided between the venues and participants, and it is possible that several events will now be modified to benefit tornado relief efforts. Venues scheduled to take part in this year’s festival include Analog at Hutton Hotel, The Bluebird Cafe, Cross-Eyed Critters Watering Hole, Douglas Corner Cafe, Fat Kat Slims, The Listening Room, The Lounge at City Winery, NashHouse Southern Spoon & Saloon, 3rd & Lindsley and True Music Room & Bar.
For those who purchased Tin Pan South Fast Access Passes to the festival and/or registered for the Tin Pan South Songwriting Seminar, the option to receive a refund or to transfer the passes or registration to the newly scheduled date will be available.
The Gospel Music Association (GMA) announced its Hall of Fame inductees for 2020: 4Him (Contemporary Christian), Commissioned (Gospel), The Isaacs (Southern Gospel) and Bill Hearn (non-performing).
The Class of 2020 will be recognized at the 7th annual GMA Honors and Hall of Fame Induction ceremony on May 6 in Nashville.
In addition, the GMA will recognize its 2020 Honorees at the ceremony: Chris Tomlin for Angel Armies, Steve Moore for The Shalom Foundation, Wes Campbell and Dave Wagner for Thriving Children’s Foundation, and Willie Moore Jr. for Bethany Christian Services.
Presenters and performers will be announced in the coming weeks.
Artists are eligible for inclusion in the GMA Gospel Music Hall of Fame after 25 years of participation in music and ministry. The GMA Hall of Fame Committee is comprised of historians and industry leaders from various gospel music genres.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 11 Tennessee dropped Sunday’s series finale against Wright State, 6-3, at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
The Raiders (5-9) secured the series win with Sunday’s victory, while the Volunteers lost their first weekend series of the year.
The Big Orange managed to make things interesting with three runs over the final three innings after falling behind 6-0. The Vols had the tying run at the plate in the bottom of the ninth, but Christian Scott struck out and Jake Rucker flew out to right field to end the rally.
For the third straight game, UT struggled to get the bats going against Wright State’s starting pitcher. Austin Cline held the Vols (14-2) to just three hits in five shutout innings to earn his second win of the year.
Tennessee’s middle infield tandem of Liam Spence and Max Ferguson accounted for the majority of the Vols’ offense on Sunday, combining for five of the team’s eight hits. Spence finished the day with three hits and a walk while Ferguson went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI.
Tyler Black had a big day for the Raiders, leading them with three hits, two runs and two RBI, including a two-run homer in the sixth inning.
Chase Wallace started for the Vols and fell to 1-1 on the year after giving up two runs on four hits in four innings of work.
Tennessee will look to rebound from Sunday’s loss on Tuesday night when in-state foe ETSU visits Lindsey Nelson Stadium for a midweek matchup. First pitch is slated for 6 p.m.
Notable Spence Ties Career High
Spence was one of the bright spots at the plate for Tennessee on Sunday, tying a career high with three hits. The junior infielder from Geelong, Australia reached base in all four of his plate appearances and also scored a run.
Connell and Pleasants Impressive in Relief Kirby Connell and Elijah Pleasants were solid in relief for the Vols on Sunday, holding Wright State to just two hits over the final 3.1 innings of the game. The duo also combined for three strikeouts and walked just one batter.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – A career day from sophomore catcher Ally Shipman and complete game shutout in the circle from freshman Callie Turner pushed the Tennessee softball team past Stanford, 5-0, on Sunday at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium to close out the Tennessee Invitational.
Turner’s performance was the first complete game shutout of her young Tennessee career. She routinely pitched to contact, allowing her defense to put in work behind her, giving up just four hits and a walk on an efficient 82 pitches.
The Lady Vols (14-8) offense went to work early, putting a run across in three of the first four innings, tattooing the Cardinal (22-4) for seven hits in those same four innings.
Shipman strung together a career-high four hits with two extra-base-hits, putting a double into the gap in right centerfield in the third and going yard for her second homer of the season to put UT up 3-0 in the fourth.
Senior outfielder Cailin Hannon (2-for-4) was huge for the Orange & White, tallying RBI’s in the first and third to put UT up early, along with a third in the seventh inning to add insurance to the Lady Vols advantage.
The victory was Tennessee’s first shutout of 2020 and its third consecutive win of the weekend.
Shipman Stays Hot Ally Shipman was hot throughout the Tennessee Invitational, tallying 12 hits in 16 at-bats for a .750 average, recording 3+ hits in three of her five outings. She also concluded the weekend with four extra-base-hits and six RBIs.
Up Next
Tennessee returns to action for a midweek matchup with North Carolina inside Sherri Parker Lee Stadium. First pitch on Tuesday night is slated for 8 p.m. ET on ESPNU.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – After a nearly four-hour game to start the day, Tennessee made up the time as it swiftly dismantled ETSU 10-2 in five innings on a walk-off walk to sweep day two of the Tennessee Invitational.
The Lady Vols recorded a season-high 15 hits to keep the Bucs (8-13) off balance on Saturday night.
In what became a rubber match, UT picked up the series win over ETSU after dropping a game in Johnson City, Tenn., on March 1, before recovering with a 10-1, run-rule win yesterday.
The Lady Vols move to 13-8 on the season as they head into their final two non-conference match-ups before SEC play begins next weekend at Texas A&M.
Leading 9-2 heading into the top of the fifth, UT turned its 16th double of the season with the bags full to prevent any runs and set up the early finish.
After loading the bases in the bottom of the fifth, junior Ashley Morgan (0-for-1) drew the walk on a full count to bring in freshman Kiki Milloy from the hot corner.
The Lady Vols offense pounced immediately as it rattled off four quick runs in the bottom of the first behind five consecutive hits at the top of the order.
UT’s first three batters, Chelsea Seggern, Amanda Ayala and Ally Shipman went 6-for-6 collectively through the opening two innings at the plate and accounted for six of the first seven runs.
Seggern (3-for-4) lit up the night with three consecutive extra-base hits, raking a pair of doubles to tie a single game career high and her first triple of the season to set the table for Ayala (3-for-3) and Shipman (3-for-3).
Six different Lady Vols recorded hits, while three different players record two RBIs each.
Samantha Bender (2-0) picked up back-to-back wins today in the circle after coming in to relieve Callie Turner who started against ETSU. In 3.0 innings of work Bender gave up just three hits.
Next Up
Tennessee finishes off its weekend with a 12 p.m. ET rematch with Stanford for the tournament title. The game will be streamed live on SECN+.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Dominant pitching and solo home runs from Max Ferguson and Liam Spence led Tennessee to a series-tying 3-1 win over Wright State Saturday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
Jackson Leath earned his team-leading fourth victory of the year after allowing just one unearned run on four hits in 4.2 innings of relief.
Junior left hander Garrett Crochet got the start for Tennessee (14-1) in what was his first appearance of the season. The preseason All-American went 3.1 innings, struck out six batters and surrendered only two hits.
Redmond Walsh came on in the ninth inning for the Vols to earn his second save of the season after striking out two batters.
After threatening in both the first and second innings and leaving a total of three runners on base, the Vols got on the board in the third when Ferguson homered over the right field wall to give the Vols a 1-0 advantage.
Tennessee’s offense stayed quiet until the seventh inning, when the Big Orange took a 2-0 lead on another solo home run – this time from the junior Spence. The Geelong, Australia native’s home run to left field marked his first of the season and made him the 14th Vol to go yard this season.
Trailing 2-0, Wright State (4-9) cut its deficit to one in the top of the eighth inning. With runners on first and third, Leath’s pickoff attempt sailed wide of Luc Lipcius at first base, which allowed Gehrig Anglin to score from third on the errant throw.
After struggling throughout the game with runners in scoring position, freshman Drew Gilbert broke the trend with a clutch two-out single up the middle that drove in Lipcius from second base and padded Tennessee’s lead to 3-1.
Wright State briefly threatened during its final opportunity in the ninth inning with a double from Konner Piotto, but two straight strikeouts from Walsh wrapped up the win for the Vols.
The Vols and Raiders will meet for the series finale on Sunday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium at 1 p.m.
Notable Another Vol Goes Deep
Saturday’s two-home run outing was Tennessee’s 12th multi-home run game of the season and pushed the Vols’ home run total to 27. Entering the weekend, Tennessee led the nation in total home runs. Spence’s solo homer in seventh inning made him the 14th Vol to hit a home run this season.
Pitching Bounces Back
After UT’s pitching staff surrendered a season-high 13 hits and five runs during Friday’s loss, the Vols’ trio of Crochet, Leath and Walsh combined to give up just seven hits and zero earned runs during Saturday’s win.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – A 19-point outing from Vols junior John Fulkerson led the way for Tennessee on Saturday, as UT fell to Auburn, 85-63.
Tennessee is locked in as the No. 8 seed at next week’s SEC Tournament in Nashville. The Vols tipoff Thursday at 1 p.m. ET / noon CT against the TBD No. 9 seed.
Seniors Jordan Bowden and Lamonte Turner took part in a pregame Senior Day ceremony Saturday. Turner’s UT career ended prematurely in December due to injury. Bowden finished with 17 points and a game-high four assists.
Fulkerson added seven rebounds and one block to his stat line while going 9-for-13 from the free-throw line. The All-SEC candidate has now scored 15 or more points in six of the past seven games.
Freshman Santiago Vescovi scored 13 points on 3-of-5 shooting from beyond the 3-point arc. The true freshman scored in double figures in all but one SEC home game this season.
The Tigers’ 3-point shooting helped them combat the momentum the Vols built during a stretch run of the second half.
Fulkerson picked up where he left off from Tuesday’s win at Kentucky in Rupp Arena. The Kingsport, Tennessee, native scored 13 of the Vols’ first 23 points. His hot start consisted of making four of his five field-goal attempts in the first half.
Tennessee opened the game with feisty defense, as the fast-paced contest began in back-and-forth fashion. With the Vols trailing by seven points, Jalen Johnson connected on a key 3-point attempt. Bowden later knocked down a triple to beat the halftime buzzer and cut the Tennessee deficit to 11 heading into the break, 42-31.
Auburn used an 8-0 run to increase its lead to 17 early in the second half, but Tennessee’s response came quickly and furiously. The Big Orange proceeded to outscore the Tigers 14-3 over the ensuing 1:49, with Vescovi accounting for two 3-point makes during the run.
The Vols battled the Tigers down the stretch, cutting the deficit to 10 with just under five minutes remaining, but could not take the lead.
Four Vols played at least 36 minutes, as Tennessee fell to 17-14 (9-9 SEC).
Samir Doughty led the way for Auburn with 32 points behind eight made 3-pointers.
Senior Day: Knoxville native Jordan Bowden had an efficient performance in his final regular-season home game and 99th career start in a Vol uniform. He recorded 17 points, four rebounds, four assists and one steal in 37 minutes of play.
Air France: SEC Defensive Player of the Year candidate Yves Pons finished the regular season with at least one block in each game, swatting away two shots on Saturday. He enters the SEC Tournament with 73 blocks on the year, which ties the program single-season record set by C.J. Black in 1997-98.
Up Next: Tennessee travels west on I-40 to Nashville to compete in the 2020 SEC Tournament. As the No. 8 seed, the Vols tipoff against the No. 9 seed Thursday at 1 p.m. ET / noon CT.
